Blood Test, Statin Afford Potent Shield, Study Says
By Rob Stein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, November 10, 2008
A highly anticipated study has produced powerful evidence that a simple blood test can spot seemingly healthy people who are at increased risk for a heart attack or stroke and that giving them a widely used drug offers potent protection against the nation's leading killers.
In findings that could transform efforts to prevent cardiovascular disease, the study of nearly 18,000 volunteers flagged by the test in 26 countries found that a cholesterol-lowering statin slashed the risk by about half -- even if their cholesterol was normal.
"The potential public health benefits are huge," said Paul M. Ridker of the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, who presented the findings yesterday at a meeting of the American Heart Association in New Orleans. "It really changes the way we have to think about prevention of heart attack and stroke."
The test measures a bodily reaction known as inflammation, reinforcing an increasingly accepted theory about the underlying biology of heart disease, which kills about 450,000 Americans each year.
"It's a breakthrough study," said Steven E. Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic, who was not involved in the research. "It's a blockbuster. It's absolutely paradigm-shifting."
(More here.)
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, November 10, 2008
A highly anticipated study has produced powerful evidence that a simple blood test can spot seemingly healthy people who are at increased risk for a heart attack or stroke and that giving them a widely used drug offers potent protection against the nation's leading killers.
In findings that could transform efforts to prevent cardiovascular disease, the study of nearly 18,000 volunteers flagged by the test in 26 countries found that a cholesterol-lowering statin slashed the risk by about half -- even if their cholesterol was normal.
"The potential public health benefits are huge," said Paul M. Ridker of the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, who presented the findings yesterday at a meeting of the American Heart Association in New Orleans. "It really changes the way we have to think about prevention of heart attack and stroke."
The test measures a bodily reaction known as inflammation, reinforcing an increasingly accepted theory about the underlying biology of heart disease, which kills about 450,000 Americans each year.
"It's a breakthrough study," said Steven E. Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic, who was not involved in the research. "It's a blockbuster. It's absolutely paradigm-shifting."
(More here.)
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